North korean missile

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday (Nov 13) that the United States was aware of undeclared North Korean missile bases revealed by US researchers but insisted all was fine. Seoul and Korea analysts earlier played down a CSIS report which asserted that Pyongyang is operating undeclared missile bases. (AFP/Korea Summit Press Pool, MANDEL NGAN) "We fully know about the sites being discussed, nothing new - and nothing happening out of the normal," Trump, who is seeking a second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, wrote on Twitter. "I will be the first to let you know if things go bad!" he said. Researchers at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, a prominent Washington think tank, on Tuesday said that satellite imagery had found 13 missile bases undeclared by North Korea. The bases can be used to hide mobile, nuclear-capable missiles, the study said, warning that North Korea could preserve the sites - and the ability to attack - even as it negotiates … [Read more...] about Trump says North Korea missile work ‘normal’

UNITED NATIONS: The United States is delaying approval of several requests for sanctions exemptions to deliver tractors, spare parts and other goods needed for humanitarian relief in North Korea, according to documents seen by AFP on Thursday (Nov 8). North Korea is under crippling sanctions imposed for carrying out nuclear and ballistic missile tests, but UN resolutions specify that these should not affect humanitarian aid. (AFP/STR) Russia asked the Security Council to discuss the delays during a meeting held behind closed doors on Thursday. North Korea is under crippling sanctions imposed for carrying out nuclear and ballistic missile tests, but UN resolutions specify that these should not affect humanitarian aid. The exemptions would allow deliveries of plumbing parts needed to repair North Korean health facilities, farm equipment such as tractors and other goods needed for humanitarian projects, according to documents seen by AFP. US Ambassador Nikki Haley said the … [Read more...] about US delays UN approval of North Korean aid requests

Two Koreas hold military talks as U.S. detects activity at North Korea missile factoryThe Saigon Times Daily North Korean Lieutenant General An Ik San walks with South Korean Major General Kim Do-gyun at the Peace House of the border village of Panmunjom, South Korea, July 31, 2018 – PHOTO: REUTERS SEOUL (REUTERS) - North and South Korea held military talks to build trust on Tuesday, while the United States detected renewed activity at a North Korean missile factory, casting more suspicion over the North’s intentions. The meeting, their second since June, held in the border village of Panmunjom in the demilitarized zone (DMZ), was designed to follow on from an inter-Korean summit in April at which leaders of the two Koreas agreed to defuse tensions and halt “all hostile acts.” North Korean leader Kim Jong Un also vowed during his separate summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in Singapore last month to work towards denuclearization, but there has not … [Read more...] about Two Koreas hold military talks as U.S. detects activity at North Korea missile factory

North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un shakes hands with US President Donald Trump at the start of their historic US-North Korea summit, at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa island in Singapore on Jun 12, 2018. (Photo: AFP/Saul Loeb) Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un shook hands in front of the world’s media as they met to negotiate an end to a decades-old stand-off on the Korean Peninsula. The historic handshake took place at 9.05am at the Capella hotel in Sentosa, in front of a display of North Korean and US flags. Both Trump and Kim smiled and exchanged pleasantries before posing for photographs. They then adjourned to a sitting room where both Trump and Kim fielded questions. Trump spoke first and said: "It’s my honour ... We will have a terrific relationship I have no doubt." US President Donald Trump and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un sit down for their historic US-North Korea summit, at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa island in Singapore on Jun 12, 2018. (Photo: AFP/Saul … [Read more...] about US President Trump, North Korean leader Kim meet at historic Singapore summit

In complete reversal, Trump revives summit with North Korean leader North Korean envoy Kim Yong Chol talks with U.S. President Donald Trump as they walk out of the Oval Office after a meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., June 1, 2018 – PHOTO: REUTERS WASHINGTON (REUTERS) - President Donald Trump, in a complete reversal, said on Friday he will hold a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on June 12 in Singapore in the latest twist in the high-stakes diplomacy over eliminating Pyonyang’s nuclear arms program. Eight days after cancelling the unprecedented summit, citing Pyongyang’s “open hostility,” Trump welcomed North Korea’s former intelligence chief - currently under punitive U.S. sanctions - to the White House Oval Office, afterward exchanging smiles and handshakes, patting his arm in a friendly gesture. “Good meeting today. I think it’s a great start,” Trump said after conferring for about 90 minutes … [Read more...] about In complete reversal, Trump revives summit with North Korean leader

President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed on Monday (May 28) that it is "imperative" to completely dismantle North Korea's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programme, the White House said. The White House said Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (left) and President Donald Trump will meet ahead of a much anticipated summit with North Korea's Kim Jong Un. (AFP/JOE RAEDLE) The US and Japanese leaders will meet ahead of a much anticipated summit with North Korea's Kim Jong Un back on schedule for Jun 12 in Singapore just days after Trump announced he was canceling it. The American president said the summit could go ahead as planned following a more appeasing statement from Pyongyang and productive talks with North Korean officials. Japan, which has by far the hardest line compared to neighbours China and South Korea, has been left uneasy by the pace of events, and by what it sees as an unwarranted softening toward an untrustworthy Pyongyang. Abe … [Read more...] about Trump, Abe say ‘imperative’ to dismantle North Korean weapons

UNITED NATIONS: A UN Security Council committee has agreed to lift a travel ban on North Korean officials heading to Singapore for the planned summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un next month, diplomats said. The UN Security Council is made up of five permanent members - Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States - while the 10 other seats are filled by elected members that serve two-year stints. (AFP/Drew Angerer) Singapore last week asked the sanctions committee to grant an exemption to the North Korean delegation attending the Jun 12 summit and taking part in preparatory meetings, according to the request seen by AFP. "This summit will serve as an opportunity to advance the objective of a peaceful resolution of the DPRK nuclear issue and the establishment of peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and in the region," wrote Singapore's UN Ambassador Burhan Gafoor to the committee. The letter did not specify the size of the delegation from Pyongyang. The … [Read more...] about UN lifts travel ban for North Koreans heading to Trump Kim summit in Singapore

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited China and met President Xi Jinping, state media of both countries said on Tuesday, their second encounter in two months in a flurry of diplomatic engagement that has eased tensions on the Korean peninsula. They met on Monday and Tuesday in the coastal city of Dalian ahead of what would be a historic meeting between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump that the White House has said could take place as soon as this month. China has been keen to show it has an indispensable role in seeking a lasting solution to tension over North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons, concerned that its interests may be ignored, especially as North Korea and the United States establish contacts. During the visit, announced only after it was over, Kim told Xi he hoped relevant parties would take “phased” and “synchronized” measures to realize denuclearization and lasting peace on the Korean peninsula. “So long as relevant parties … [Read more...] about North Korean leader Kim visits China, meets President Xi

North Korean logistics officials arrived in South Korea on Sunday after a previous cancellation briefly cast doubts on the North's participation in next month's Winter Olympics. South Korean broadcaster YTN reported the delegation had arrived in Seoul early Sunday under a heavy police presence, then boarded a train to Pyeongchang, where the Olympics will be held from February 9-25. The seven-member North Korean delegation had originally been scheduled to visit on Saturday to check venues for performances by an art troupe during the Olympics, but cancelled just before the visit with no explanation. Officials from both Korea's used a cross-border hotline to reschedule the visit. The preparations are part of the North's participation in the games, an apparent diplomatic breakthrough after months of high tension over the North's nuclear and missile programme. North Korea will send 22 athletes to the Winter Games in the neighbouring South next month and compete in three sports and five … [Read more...] about North Korean delegation arrives in South Korea for Olympics prep

Trump's remarks were a further pivot from his often-bellicose rhetoric on North Korea and Kim, with whom he has engaged in a war of words that raised fears of nuclear war as Pyongyang carried out missile and nuclear tests."I always believe in talking," Trump said at the Camp David presidential retreat when asked if he would speak to Kim by phone."Absolutely I would do that, no problem with that at all," Trump said, while making clear this did not mean he would do so without preconditions.North and South Korea have agreed to hold their first official talks in more than two years, and Trump expressed hopes that they would go beyond discussions of Pyongyang's participation in the upcoming Winter Olympics in the South, which a North Korean Olympic official said Saturday was "likely.""I would love to see them take it beyond the Olympics," Trump said. "And at the appropriate time, we'll get involved."He added that if something could come out of the talks, "that would be a great thing for all … [Read more...] about Trump says willing to talk with North Korean leader